The Boy Wonder It was 1998 Soccer scout Betinho dos Santos was searching for talent in the Brazilian town of São Vicente He watched some players booting a ball around the beach He knew a gifted athlete when he saw one After all only a few years before he had discovered a future superstar in Robinho But the most intriguing prospect he observed that day was not running around on the sand He was hanging around his mother in the stands Soccer is popular at Santos Beach in the Brazilian town of São Vicente Neymar’s talents were discovered there as a six-year-old 6 CHAPTER ONE
Dos Santos might never have imagined finding a potential star in any six-year-old Yet there he was a skinny little kid performing magic with a soccer ball Dos Santos stared at the child The more he stared the more amazed he became That was a moment dos Santos The Boy Wonder QUICK FACT Neymar was born and raised near one of the biggest cities in the world Only four cities have more people than São Paulo Brazil The population of São Paulo’s metropolitan area was more than 21 million in 2016 That represents the largest population of any city in the Western Hemisphere would never forget I saw that kid running around and he caught my attention he recalled later during an interview He already had agility and coordination Of course he was very very thin too Then he started doing some tricks with the ball tricks that a normal kid would never do I was shocked That child was Neymar da Silva Santos Jr Among the professional players on the beach that day was his father Neymar da Silva Sr His Neymar right and his father center watch a soccer match Neymar’s dad instilled a passion for soccer into his son at an early age 7
dad had instilled in him a passion for soccer that would remain for a lifetime The boy needed little encouragement He showed an interest in the sport at the age of two The younger Neymar was born in Mogi das Cruzes on February 5 1992 The town is a short drive north from São Paulo the largest city in Brazil He moved at age six with his family to his grandmother’s home in São Vicente a beach town just south of São Paulo Neymar would not stay there long His father did not play soccer at near the level his son would Neymar would sign a contract with teams that gave him a chance The next move was to Jardim Gloria an area in the city of Praia Grande The family was not rich But it was wealthier than any other in QUICK FACT Neymar’s sister Rafaella Beckran is a successful model Neymar and Rafaella are very close They even sport matching tattoos His reads sorella which means sister in Italian Hers reads fratello which translates to brother in Italian 8 NEYMAR SOCCER SUPERSTAR
The Boy Wonder Neymar was raised as one of the luckier children in the Jardim Gloria neighborhood The area is part of the town of Praia Grande 9
